… by Caela
MLB All-Star Weekend
The MLB All-Star Weekend is a combination of the Home Run Derby and the All-Star Game. The Home Run Derby is when eight of the league’s best hitters compete to see who can hit the most home runs in three rounds of competition. Four players are from the National League and four are from the American League. In the first round all eight players try to hit as many home runs as possible. At the end of the first round the four players with the least amount of home runs are eliminated and the other four players move on to the second round. The second round is the same as the first round but there are now only four players. In the second round the player’s home runs from the first round carry on to the second round. After the second round the two players that hit the least amount of home runs after both rounds are eliminated and the other two move on to the Finals. The two finalists start with zero home runs in the final round, and whoever hits the most home runs in the final round wins the Home Run Derby. The All-Star Game is pretty much like any other baseball game but both the teams consist of all the best players in the league and all the players get to participate in the game. Whichever team scores the most runs wins the All-Star Game and that league gets home field advantage in the World Series.
2012 Home Run Derby
The eight players in this year’s Home Run Derby were Jose Bautista of the Toronto Blue Jays, Carlos Beltran of the St. Louis Cardinals, Mark Trumbo of the Los Angeles Angels, Prince Fielder of the Detroit Tigers, Carlos Gonzalez of the Colorado Rockies, Andrew McCutchen of the Pittsburg Pirates, Matt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and Robinson Cano of the New York Yankees. In the first round Cano hit zero home runs, Kemp hit one home run, McCutchen hit four home runs, Gonzalez hit four home runs, Fielder hit five home runs, Beltran hit seven home runs, Trumbo hit seven home runs, and Bautista hit eleven home runs. Cano, Kemp McCutchen and Gonzalez were eliminated and Fielder, Beltran, Trumbo and Bautista moved on to the second round. In the second round Fielder hit eleven home runs for a total for 16 home runs, Beltran hit five home runs for a total of 12 home runs, Trumbo hit six home runs for a total of 13 runs, and Bautista hit two home runs for a total of 13 runs. The two finalists were Fielder and Bautista. They both start with zero home runs. Bautista hit seven home runs for second place and Fielder hit 12 home runs to win the Home Run Derby.
2012 All-Star Game
The All-Star game was won by the National league, they won 8-0. In the first inning they scored five runs and here is how they did it. Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers hit a double to let Melky Cabrera of the St. Louis Cardinals to score; Pablo Sandoval of the San Francisco Giants hit a triple to let Ryan Braun, Carlos Beltran of the St. Louis Cardinals, and Buster Posey of the San Francisco Giants score three runs; Dan Uggla of the Atlanta Braves singled to let Pablo Sandoval score. In the fourth inning they scored three runs. Matt Holiday of the St. Louis Cardinals hit a single to let Rafael Furcal of the St. Louis Cardinals to score and Melky Cabrera hit a two run homer to left field to let Matt Holiday score for the winning run. Congratulations to Prince Fielder on his winning the Home Run Derby, and congrats to the National league on a third straight win of the All-Star Game.
Wimbledon
Wimbledon was won by Roger Federer for the men and Serena Williams for the women. This will be Roger Federer’s 17th Major and his 7th Wimbledon. For Serena Williams this is her 14th Major and her 5th Wimbledon. Roger Federer has won Wimbledon more times than any other Major and Serena Williams has won Wimbledon and the Australian Open five times. Roger beat Albert Ramos of Spain in the First Round. He beat Fabio Fognini of Italy in the Second Round. He beat Julian Benneteau of France in the Third Round. He beat Xavier Malisse of Belgium in the Fourth Round. He beat Mikhail Youzhny of Russia in the Quarter Finals. He beat Novak Djokovic of Serbia in the Semi Finals. He beat Andy Murry of Great Britain in the Finals to win Wimbledon. Serena beat Barbora Zahlavova Stycova of Czech Republic in the First Round. She beat Melinda Czink of Hungry in the Second Round. She beat Jie Zheng of China in the Third Round. She beat Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan in the Fourth Round. She beat Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic in the Quarter Finals. She beat Victoria Azarenka of Belarus in the Semi Finals. She beat Ahnieszka Radwanska of Poland in the Finals to win Wimbledon. Well I want to Congratulate Roger Federer and Serena Williams on winning Wimbledon and the great careers they have had and still have to come.
The Open Championship
The third Major of the year is The Open Championship. The Open Championship was held at Royal Lytham St. Anne’s Golf Club in Lytham St. Anne’s, Lancashire near Blackpool, England. Ernie Els of South Africa won the Open Championship by one shot. For this tournament we will follow Ernie Els, Adam Scott, Tiger Woods, and Brandt Snedeker. First here is some information on Ernie Els. Ernie is 42 years old. He married Liezel in 1998 they had their first child Samantha in 1999 and their second child Benjamin aka Ben in 2002. He has 62 professional wins in his career and four of those wins are Majors. Two of them are the U.S. Open in 1994 and 1997. Two of them are the Open Championship in 2002 and 2012.
First Round: In the first round Ernie Els shot a 67 -3 under par three off the lead. Adam Scott shot a 64 -6 under par. Tiger Woods shot a 67 -3 under par three off the lead. Brandt Snedeker shot a -4 under par two shots off the lead. At the end of the first round Adam Scott had the first round lead.
Second Round: In the second round Ernie Els shot a 70 even par to stay at -3 under par seven off the lead. Adam Scott shot 67 -3 under par to go to -9 under par one off the lead. Tiger Woods shot a 67 -3 under par to go to -6 under par four off the lead. Brandt Snedeker shot a 64 -6 under par to go to -10 under par. At the end of the second round Brandt Snedeker had the second round lead.
Third Round: In the third round Ernie Els shot a 68 -2 under par to go to -5 under par six off the lead. Adam Scott shot a 68 -2 under par to go to -11 under par. Tiger Woods shot a 70 even par to stay at -6 under par five off the lead. Brandt Snedeker shot a 73 +3 over par to go to -7 under par four off the lead. At the end of the third round Adam Scott had the third round lead.
Fourth Round: In the fourth round Ernie Els shot a 68 -2 under par to end the tournament at -7 under par. Adam Scott shot a 75 +5 over par to end the tournament at -6 under par. Tiger Woods shot a 73 +3 over par to end the tournament at -3 under par. Brandt Snedeker shot a 74 +4 over par to end the tournament -3 under par. At the end of the tournament Ernie Els was our winner, Adam Scott was the runner-up, Tiger Woods, and Brandt Snedeker were both tied for third. Congrats to Ernie Els on his fourth Major and better luck next time Adam Scott. I know you will win a Major someday because you are that good. God Bless.
Sport Events in August
MLB: There will be 427 baseball games in the month of August.
Men’s Tennis: The ATP Legg Mason Tennis Classic is from July 30 to August 5, the ATP Rogers Cup is from August 6 to August 12, the ATP Western& Southern Open is from August 13 to August 19, the ATP Winston-Salem Open is from August 20 to August 26, and the US Open is from August 27 to September 9.
Women’s Tennis: The WTA Citi Open is from July 30 to August 5, the WTA Rogers Cup presented by National Bank is from August 7 to August 13, the WTA Tour Western& Southern Financial Group Women’s Open is from August 13 to August 19, the WTA New Haven at Yale is from August 19 to August 25, the WTA Texas Tennis Open is from August 19 to August 26, and the US Open is from August 27 to September 9.
PGA Golf Tour: The Reno-Tahoe Open and the World Golf Championships- Bridgestone Invitational are from August 2 to August 5. The PGA Championship is from August 9 to August 12, and the Wyndham Championship is from August 16 to August 19.
European Golf Tour: the World Golf Championships- Bridgestone Invitational is form August 2 to August 5, the UA PGA Championship is from August 9 to August 12, the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles is from August 23 to August 26, and the Omega European Masters is from August 30 to September 2.
Ladies PGA Golf Tour: The Jamie Farr Toledo Classic Presented by Kroger, Owens Corning and O-I is from August 9 to August 12, the Safeway Classic Presented by Coca-Cola is from August 17 to August 19, and the CN Canadian Women’s Open is from August 23 to August 26.
Summer Olympics: The Summer Olympics started on July 27 and will end on August 12.
Caela’s byline: I am the oldest of six children. I am a Christian. I love watching movies, playing on my computer, and I love watching sports. I want to go to Syracuse University, and eventually become a sports journalist. My favorite sports are hockey, football (soccer), and golf.